Bird In A Cage Poem by Michael Stephen

I bring myself to you and my heart is a bird in a cage,
this heart who's voice you wish to possess to sing praises and be redeemed in the child heart mercies to which the child heart dances at your touch.
Last night you cried so sadly that you wanted only gladly to love me in your kindness and keep me in your fineness and the pain in you was singing of the depth within you from which it was winging to wrap wings with mine opening this cage door.
These powers of voices
with fears and resistance to outside insistence to mold and change us to be someone else instead of who we are in our imperfection
a flower of unique self reflection.
The raven black and sharp and shinning, spirit in flesh of the serpent fear sightless, defender of me and mine.
No wonder you hate this fearful monster of my self protection
He is the cage and not the bird.

(June 2,2012)